Abstract

This paper discusses the relevance of non formal educational experiences associated with youth work practice in Northern Ireland. It argues that while youth work is distinctly educational and involves constructive interventions with young people its role and contribution is often undervalued or misunderstood. Youth work plays a vital role in supporting young people through the increasingly prolonged and complex transition from youth to adulthood. While youth work sits within a theoretical framework of non formal education, its contribution to lifelong learning is perhaps of greater significance than has previously been recognised.